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This photo I took today makes me laugh. It appears as though I have a whole army of daffodils marching down this hillside. I DO have a lot of daffodils, but not as many as this picture would seem to indicate. 
As soon as the growing season really sets in, I'm in a kind of losing battle trying to stay on top of my yard. I need to wrestle control of a large, fenced in garden that unfortunately is being taken over by invasives like vinca, pachysandra and even wild oats (which I planted) is making aggressive inroads where it's not wanted.
This afternoon I spent some time and with considerable effort, managed to clear out the vinca from a very small garden bed on the outside of the fenced garden, where I had pretty black-eyed susies as well as strawberries (which I have never enjoyed because whatever little berries they produce are quickly consumed by chipmunks or birds). I felt forced to pull everything out becus that's the only way to also eradicate the vinca.
Not sure what to plant in its place, a sunny spot that gets afternoon sun. I have so many sedums, so while that would be a good choice, I have enough of them already. It needs to be deer-resistant and I don't want to spend money so it needs to be a division from something I already have! It needs to be tidy and not too bushy cus I have a fairly narrow walkway beside it.
It occurred to me that 4 little boxwoods would look nice there, but of course I'd have to buy them.
I have so much more vinca inside the fenced area. I am determined to get a handle on this unruly patch of land this year, even if it means using the mower in there over the vinca and pachysandra and the wild bramble shoots and....everything except the blueberry bushes. I also still have a single dwarf cherry in there I'm not sure if I'll keep.
The dwarf cherry is not really that small... It's a magnet for bees and readily proliferates, thanks to birds that eat the cherries and drop them all over the yard. This is the time of year I realize I have little cherry trees all over the place; you can only tell now cus they have these pretty little pink flowers but otherwise blend into the landscape and become invisible.
Right now it looks quite pretty in bloom but with its branches, it's hard to keep the area weed-free. I also have a large mulberry tree in there and an assortment of perennials.
When I bought this place 18 years ago, the area was all nice green grass, but with my grand plans and visions of a cute little garden with brick walkway and fountain etc, I tore it all up. Now it's a huge effort to maintain and I never have the time with all the rest of my yard demanding my attention. How I would love to have it all planted in grass again that I would only have to mow to keep it looking tidy.
The guy who was supposed to come and install my new range hood tomorrow a.m. had to reschedule, which may be just as well since tomorrow is going to be a fairly busy day. I have to drive out to Yale to do the first in a two-part study on food and self-control ($145) and after that I have a dinner meeting to attend. I've invited my friend R. to join me as he lives nearby.
In the a.m. I'll be going to the dump with a few more logs (the bane of my existence, will I ever get rid of them all?) and I want to get a few containers of free mulch, which helps keep the weeds down in my many perennial beds. It's essential, in fact, and with some Preen, it will cut down on backbreaking labor.
I got my new Chase Sapphire card today. The reward on this one, $100, is more modest than others, but the spending target, $500, is also fairly easy to hit.
And so it begins, again
April 22nd, 2013 at 10:57 pm
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Neighbor and I worked on her stove hood and used craft paint for metal. The small container was about $ 2. I believe she got it at the Dollar Store.
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